StorTech appoints VCE executive

Bernard Vertenten has been appointed Managing Executive: VCE of solutions and systems integration specialist, StorTech, with effect from 1 September 2011.

StorTech provides a full spectrum of end-to-end technology solutions with the ability to deliver on the journey towards cloud computing for corporate companies on the African continent. VCE is the Virtual Computing Environment company formed by EMC and Cisco with investments from VMware and Intel.

With more than 20 years' experience in the IT industry, Vertenten held positions with Barclays Bank and Guardian IT in the UK before founding B2CS, a consultancy services business.

“VCE accelerates the adoption of converged infrastructure and cloud-based computing models that dramatically reduce the cost of IT, while improving time to market for our customers,” Vertenten says. “VCE, through the Vblock platform, delivers the industry's first completely integrated IT offering with end-to-end vendor accountability and seamless support services.”

VCE's pre-packaged solutions are available through an extensive partner network, and cover horizontal applications, vertical industry offerings, and application development environments, allowing customers to focus on business innovation, instead of integrating, validating and managing IT infrastructure.

“As one of only three locally appointed VCE partners, StorTech is ideally positioned to support our clients on their journey to cloud computing. Our nationwide focus on enterprise organisations has now been extended to mid-sized companies as well, enabling us to deliver the benefits of rationalisation and consolidation to a broader base,” Vertenten says.

Vblock platforms are pre-configured, with world-class compute, network, storage, management and virtualisation built into scalable platforms. When the Vblock arrives, it is fully implemented, and the customer has a fully provisioned environment at the click of a button.

StorTech has already deployed a Vblock solution for one of South Africa's top four banks, becoming the first VCE partner in the country to do so. It has also established a solutions centre where customers can bring their workloads and configurations, and where an end-to-end proof-of-concept can be performed for each customised solution.

Vblock platforms use efficient virtualisation to accelerate time to market and reduce overall operating costs. As they are pre-configured, they enable rapid deployment for cloud computing applications, so customers see a quick return on their investments.

Standard elements are used, enabling StorTech to provide Vblocks swiftly, while simultaneously accelerating and de-risking the integration process. The Vblock is then customised according to each customer's specific requirements. The result is superior quality, fewer delays and predictable consistency in the long term.

“The StorTech Solutions Centre is fully stocked with all the solutions available under the VCE umbrella,” Vertenten says.